Summary The pelleted dung of mammals has been used in attempts to study animal numbers, habitat occupance and feeding habits. In this study the authors have collected whole pellet groups and samples of twenty random pellets from each group, for eleven species of African bovid. These samples have been studied in an attempt to establish a predictive relationship between mammal body weight and pellet dry weight. Samples were obtained from four study areas in South Africa in July and August 1977. A highly significant (P= < 0.001) linear relationship is shown to exist between ungulate body weight and the mean dry weight of whole pellet groups and random pellet samples. It is suggested that a power curve provides a better estimator of body weight from the random pellet samples (y) = 6.4387 x1.1223) than a linear regression. This method may be employed to establish a mean body weight for a population or individual weights for different age classes within a population. Such an age–class relationship is shown to exist for the Greater Kudu population at the Rhenosterpoort Nature Reserve in the Transvaal. The estimation of the water content of sun‐dried pellets demonstrates that correction factors can be established for use when oven drying facilities are not available. During the South African winter up to 40% of the pellet groups observed in Timbavati were attacked by coprophagous insects. Since such activity would be much higher in the wet season it is proposed that samples of twenty random pellets from each group provide a logistically more suitable estimator of mammal body weight than the collection of whole pellet groups. Résumé Les excréments de mammifères ont été utilisés comme matériel d'essai pour des études d'abondance d'animaux, l'occupation de l'habitat et les habitudes alimentaires. Au cours de cette étude, les auteurs ont récolté des groupes entiers d'excréments et des échantillons de vingt excréments au hasard dans chaque groupe, ceci pour onze espèces de bovidés africains. Ces échantillons ont étéétudiés en vue d'établie une relation prédictive entre le poids corporel du mammifère et le poids sec de l'excrément. Les échantillons furent obtenus dans cinq zones d'études en Afrique du Sud en juillet et août 1977. Une relation linéaire hautement significative (P= < 0.001) existe entre le poids corporel de l'ongulé et le poids sec moyen du groupe entier d'excréments et des échantillons d'excréments pris au hasard. Il est suggéré qu'une courbe de puissances fournit une meilleure estimation du poids du corps á partir d'échantillons d'excréments (y= 6.438 x1.1223) qu'une régression linéaire. Cette méthode peut être utilisée pour établir le poids moyen d'une population ou les poids individuels pour différentes classes d'âge dans une population. On montre qu'une telle relation à des classes d'âge existe pour la population de grands koudous dans la réserve naturelle de Rhenosterpoort dans le Transvaal. L'estimation du contenu en eau dans des excréments séchés au soleil démontre que des facteurs de correction peuvent ê...

Parasite infection is a common problem in organic pig production, which can compromise health and growth of pigs, threaten food safety of pork products, and cause economic losses to organic farmers. To develop management strategies for controlling parasites, we evaluated intestinal parasite infection in pigs at different ages and of different sexes, and investigated whether parasite infection influences growth performance and carcass traits in a cross-sectional study. Fecal samples were collected from pigs (n = 298) raised under near-organic standards during nursery, growing, finishing, and gestating phases for analysis of fecal egg counts (FEC) of Ascaris suum, Trichuris suis, and Oesophagostomum spp. Ascaris suum eggs were not detected in the feces of nursery pigs. Eggs of Ascaris suum were found in 45%, 74%, and 0% of fecal samples of growing pigs, finishing pigs, and gestating sows, respectively, after false-positive adjustment (P &lt; 0.001). Mean FEC of Ascaris suum was higher in infected finishing pigs than in infected growing pigs [2,502 vs. 724 eggs per gram (epg), P &lt; 0.001]. No differences in percent of Ascaris suum positive samples or FEC of Ascaris suum were detected between sexes. Growth performance and carcass traits were not different between non-infected pigs and those infected with Ascaris suum. All pigs (n = 32) examined at slaughter had white spots on the liver, and 78% harbored Ascaris suum worms. Trichuris suis eggs were not detected in any fecal samples. Eggs of Oesophagostomum spp. were found in 7%, 0%, 1%, and 9% of fecal samples of nursery pigs, growing pigs, finishing pigs, and gestating sows, respectively, with a maximum FEC of 40 epg in all age groups. These results indicate Ascaris suum was the predominant parasite infecting growing and finishing pigs in the herds studied. To control A. suum infection, future research should investigate the efficacy of treating pigs with organically approved anthelmintics during the growing phase of production.

Swine parasites present challenges for organic pig farmers and represent suboptimal animal health because the use of synthetic anthelmintics is not allowed. The objective of this study was to investigate prevalence and fecal egg counts (FEC) of three intestinal parasites (Ascaris, Trichuris, and Oesophagostomum) on organic pig farms in the United States. Nine farms across 4 states were investigated. Pigs on all farms were raised within no-confinement facilities, had access to the outdoors or pasture except for one farm that housed sows in a hoop barn, and no use of synthetic anthelmintics from birth to market weight for growing/finishing pigs and from the third trimester of gestation for sows. Herd size varied from 12 to 416 (median=50) pigs. Four to 16 fecal samples were collected in each pen or pasture. A total of 186 samples were analyzed for FEC using the concentrated McMaster technique to yield eggs per gram (epg) of fecal samples. Pigs were categorized as breeders (gestating sows of all parity and boars), growing pigs (2 to 5 months old), or finishing pigs (5 months old to market weight). Results indicate that 56%, 89%, and 44% farms were infected with Oesophagostomum, Ascaris, and Trichuris, respectively. Overall, breeders on infected farms had higher (P=0.01) FEC of Oesophagostomum (1,115 epg ± 1,647 SD) than growing (60 epg ± 9.5 SD) and finishing pigs (237 epg ± 234 SD). Growing and finishing pigs had higher (P&lt; 0.001) FEC of Ascaris (1,733 epg ± 1,208 SD for growing pigs; 1,162 epg ± 630 SD for finishing pigs) than breeders (5 epg ± 2.5 SD). Trichuris FEC was relatively low (&lt; 80 epg for pigs in all production stages) compared to other parasites. Results suggest that swine parasite infection is common on organic/alternative farms and strategies to control parasites need to be developed.

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This study explored whether biofumigation with rapeseed can reduce swine parasite eggs in pasture soil. Pastures were subjected to four treatments: rapeseed or Ladino clover pastures, each with or without biofumigation (i.e. mechanical incorporation of plant residues into the soil). Each pasture was split into four paddocks and 8 to 9 pigs were given access to each paddock for one week. Fecal samples (n = 66) were collected from each pig before grazing for analysis of Ascaris suum, Trichuris suis, and Oesophagostomum spp. egg counts. Soil samples (n = 480) were collected from each paddock before grazing, immediately after pigs were removed from paddocks, and weekly thereafter for three weeks for analysis of Ascaris suum, and Trichuris suis egg counts. Pasture treatment did not affect egg counts of either parasite species in the soil. Eggs of A. suum and T. suis in pasture soil were reduced (both P < 0.05) two weeks after pigs were removed, compared to before grazing and immediately after pigs were removed. This study demonstrated that biofumigation was not effective in reducing swine parasite eggs in organic pasture soil, and parasite contamination was reduced two weeks after pigs were removed from pastures regardless of biofumigation.